Nooms From Home

Each night, after meditation, the kids get a noom (pronounced the same as gnome).  This week, thanks to my mom, the kids enjoyed some snacks that came all the way from the USA.

My New Roomates

Pompous, the cat, making himself at home on my shelves.  

 I came back to my room one night to find this rustling around in my clothes.  Getting him off the wall and out of my room was a little tricky.  

It's hard to tell from this picture, but that spider on my wall is about the size of my palm, and it's not the biggest I've seen in my room. 

A Few Faces

 

Virak

Srey Mao

 Sovanarith

 

Ratana

 Chai

It's All Fun and Games...and Some Work

Some of the boys working on a gravel path, in order to earn their daily allowance.

The kids also attend a weekly yoga class in order to earn their allowance.  

 Playing a game that I still don't understand, or know the name of, no matter how many times I ask.  

 All I know is that it involves throwing little pebbles into a grid of squares drawn on the ground.  

 Each night, after meditation, comes a dance party.  Sometimes they even turn on a little strobe light they have.  It gets pretty wild.  

 Cooling off in the pond. 

Photo Booth Fun

Youngest member of the Wat Opot clan, Ratana.

 

Every morning when I use my computer to go on the Internet, the kids get a kick out of having photo booth picture sessions. 

A Trip to the Market

After a trip to the market with some of the older kids.

A typical store front. 

View from my room.   

Getting Acquainted

  

Just some of the little smiling faces that greeted me on my first morning.  The children here, who have been affected by HIV/AIDS in one way or another, all have amazing stories that I have been learning about since arriving here at Wat Opot.

First Impression

During my day in Phnom Penh, Kate and I stopped at a pharmacy to pick up supplies for the clinic at Wat Opot.  She got a whole box full of antibiotics, other medications, and supplies.  All of it only cost about $120.  In the US it would have cost over $1,000!  This is a view of the road from the pharmacy.  There are basically no traffic laws, so tuk tuks, motorbikes and cars weave in and out of each other and pretty much do what they want.  

On our tuk tuk ride home, we had to pull over when we ran into an afternoon rain storm.

Our tuk tuk driver, Tamap, had to lug around my huge suitcase, another 70 lb suitcase full of donations I brought from Kate's mom, mine and Kate's bookbags, a box full of medical supplies, and some grocery bags.  Oh, and me and Kate too.